Judging Genocide: Rios Montt Trial Judges at UC Hastings Oct. 9

UC Hastings Professor Naomi Roht-Arriaza will moderate this event, which is free and open to the public.

In May 2013, former Guatemalan dictator Efraín Ríos Montt was convicted of genocide and war crimes. The trial represented the first time anywhere in the world that a former head of state has been tried in a national court for genocide. The three judges who delivered the globally significant verdict will discuss the Guatemalan justice system, the structure of the courts, and their involvement in judging crimes against humanity.

Yassmin Barrios, Patricia Bustamante, and Pablo Xitumul are the Guatemalan judges who presided during the Ríos Montt trial. Together they compose the Trial Court ‘A’ of the Guatemalan High Impact courts, an innovation intended to provide extra resources and security to those involved in high-profile or dangerous cases involving the military, drug traffickers, corrupt officials, or other powerful actors. They have been threatened and harassed for their work, but have continued to preside over human-rights related cases.

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Team members Katherine Green '16, Nathaniel Ku '16 and Andrea Tool '16 triumphed by arguing two rounds on Friday and four rounds on Saturday to become the National Champions. Writeup by Assistant Dean Toni Young '76.

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